


Swordplay

by Burgie



Series: SSO Medieval AU [31]
Category: Star Stable Online
Genre: F/M, Medieval AU, warning for language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-25
Updated: 2018-04-25
Packaged: 2019-04-27 19:16:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14432310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burgie/pseuds/Burgie
Summary: Louisa begins to learn the fine art of swordsmanship from an up-and-coming squire. Shadow belongs to Shadowlord13.





	Swordplay

_“A slut like you doesn’t belong in the royal court.”_

Louisa swore that she could still feel the kiss of the blade at her throat, smell the scent of that noble lady’s perfume that she’d once admired so much. Now, even the whiff of it made her heart go into palpitations, her stomach tie into knots. She twisted her handkerchief between her hands, taking a deep breath and squeezing her eyes shut. She let out the small, shaky breath that she’d inhaled, trying to still the trembling in her hands.

Several weeks ago now, Louisa had been accosted on her way home from the stables where she kept Smokeeye, her magnificent Andalusian mare. Scott’s own gelding, a light grey Lusitano by the name of Atlas (he’d acquired the horse from Isabel Stonefield, a lady who had been unable to pay her taxes and had instead offered her horse), also resided there. She’d been taking a shortcut through one of the dimmer parts of the land on which she lived, where large, ornate walls that were sadly decorated with cracks but also beautiful ivy threw shadows over the path. A sweet scent had suddenly reached her nostrils, to which Louisa had smiled, enjoying the scent. And then, suddenly, a hand had reached out from the shadows, pinning Louisa against the wall. The scent had grown stronger, almost dizzying, but Louisa never caught a glimpse of her assailant. She saw only robes and a hood and the briefest glimpse of a blade shining in a beam of moonlight.

A hand had torn away her necklace, taking with it some strands of her hair and some skin from the back of her neck. But before Louisa had had time to cry out for help or even just plead for her life, the blade had rested against her throat, the kiss of steel something that she’d always feared but never experienced herself. Until now. She’d never known what it was like to fear for her life before.

“A slut like you doesn’t belong in the royal court,” a familiar voice had hissed. Louisa had closed her eyes and whimpered, expecting the worst.

But then, the sound of voices and hoofsteps had been heard further down the track, and the lady had backed away with a curse, hiding the knife back in her robes. Louisa had bent down once the lady was gone, scrabbling in the dirt for her necklace before picking it up in her trembling hands. She’d carried it in her hands all the way up to the manor, where her husband had taken one look at the distraught look on her face and had then pulled her into his arms.

She hadn’t left the manor for weeks since the incident. She was too afraid to. She didn’t even go to the market anymore, not even to the stables. Her husband’s younger brother, Robert, was quite handy with tools, and he’d built a small stable and pasture close to the house so that Louisa could always see her precious Smokeeye and not have to fret about her. It had been a gift for her, in an attempt to help her feel better. It had helped a little bit.

But now, Louisa spent most of her days cloistered inside her library, reading either for herself or to her son. Not that he could understand what she was saying just yet, but it was the thought that counted. And, without anyone coming to see her (for she refused visitors unless her husband was also present), she didn’t have to do so much with her appearance. She could even cuddle the cat that Scott had bought her to cheer her up. She was doing just that now, sitting in a pleasant sunbeam with a book in her hands and a cat on her lap.

When the door opened, Louisa looked up with a start, her heart pounding.

“Relax, my love, it’s only me,” said Scott, holding his hands out. Louisa relaxed a little, though she marked her page and then closed the book that she’d been reading.

“I apologise, my love,” said Louisa with downcast eyes. “I am still on edge, I am afraid.” Scott smiled at her, and Louisa wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d walked over and kissed her. In fact, she expected it. So the fact that he didn’t raised suspicion in her.

“Not to worry, my love,” said Scott. “I have brought a visitor who I hope might be able to help you more than anyone else.” Louisa sat up a little straighter, attempting to dust the cat fur from her body. The cat, a fluffy white creature who she’d named Snowball, leaped down to the floor and padded to find somewhere quieter to curl up and continue sleeping.

“Scott,” said Louisa, blushing. “Had I known that I would have a visitor, I would have presented myself better. How is my hair? My appearance?”

“Wait here one moment, please,” Scott murmured to whoever was on the other side of the door. He walked over to his wife, taking her face in his hands, and kissed her. Louisa smiled against his lips. “My love, you know that you always look stunning to me. But if it puts your mind at ease, know that our visitor is not a noble. I believe that you know of her, however.”

“If she is not a noble, then I definitely know of her,” said Louisa with a chuckle. “I have found better friends among those lesser-known that I have among the nobility.”

“That does not surprise me in the slightest,” said Scott, pressing his lips to hers once more. “Do you remember that swordwoman?”

“The little girl who can best even the most skilled male squires in combat? Yes, I remember her well,” said Louisa.

“Are you ready to receive her?” asked Scott. “I know that she will not mind the cat hair, for she loves animals as you do.”

“And my hair?” asked Louisa, smiling as she ran her fingers through her hair. Scott took a lock of her hair and curled it around his finger.

“As perfect as ever,” said Scott. “She will not judge you.”

“I know,” said Louisa. She stood from her seat, stretching legs that had gone slightly numb from sitting in the one spot with her cat on her lap. “Then I am ready.”

Scott smiled at his wife and walked back over to the door, which he opened. “Esmeralda, may I present to you Lady Louisa Buttergood,” said Scott, gesturing to his wife with a little flourish. Esmeralda curtsied as well as she could in her tunic and leggings.

“It is a pleasure to see you again, Lady Louisa,” said Esmeralda. Louisa smiled.

“The pleasure is all mine, truly,” said Louisa. “Rise, I am not… well, not fussy, I suppose, when it comes to courtly manners.” Esmeralda smiled at the lady.

“Esmeralda has come here to teach you the finer points, if I may call it that, of swordsmanship,” said Scott. “After what has happened to you, I feel that you will only regain your confidence if you know how to defend yourself.” Louisa smiled at both her husband and her visitor.

“A wise decision,” said Louisa. “Yes, I believe that it will help me. Should someone threaten me with a knife again, I will be prepared next time.”

“Which weapon would you prefer?” asked Esmeralda, taking her knife from her belt and her sword from its sheath. “Lord Scott has told me that the Buttergoods have many weapons in their armoury.”

“That is true,” said Scott, nodding. “Knives, swords, daggers, they are all at your disposal if you but ask. The Buttergoods have been famous weaponsmiths for centuries, after all.”

“Yes, why, many of the weapons used by the squires are made by Buttergood smiths,” said Esmeralda. “If they are not made by the Winterwells, that is.”

“We do not speak of that name in this house,” said Scott a little gruffly. Esmeralda blushed.

“My apologies,” said Esmeralda. Louisa smiled, glad to learn of this family’s influence on the world. She could not be in safer hands.

“I believe that a knife would be easier to conceal,” said Louisa. “A sword may deter many from trying to bring harm to me, but I fear that it may not be fitting for a lady such as myself.” Or the one that she pretended to be, anyway. The one that she was supposed to be.

“Then a knife it shall be,” said Esmeralda. “Though, depending on how this goes, would you be open to further lessons with me? It will take more than one lesson to learn how to wield a knife, and further lessons can only improve your ability to defend yourself.”

“I hate to put the guards out of a job,” said Louisa.

“Yes, the good job that they were doing a few weeks ago,” said Scott with a scoff.

“That was my fault, really,” said Louisa. “I took a shortcut home, I-“

“A good guard would have been following you, my lady,” said Esmeralda. “Even the squires are taught that the nobility must be protected.”

“Those guards were swiftly stripped of their stations, I can assure you,” said Scott.

“I would still feel better if I could defend myself, though,” said Louisa. “Lead the way to the armoury and the training room, my love.” Scott chuckled, wrapping his arm around his wife.

“There is no training room, but we can train in the courtyard,” said Scott. “Or, rather, you two can. I will supervise.” Louisa blushed.

While Scott departed the courtyard to head to the armoury to acquire the knives, Louisa was quite happy to sit in the courtyard and talk with Esmeralda.

“I only hope that having your husband here doesn’t cause you to stumble,” said Esmeralda. “I have seen many good squires make silly mistakes when their beloved is closeby.”

“Having him here will give me peace of mind,” said Louisa.

“I understand,” said Esmeralda, nodding. “It must be difficult for you to marry into nobility.” Louisa nodded.

“I have had to learn so much,” said Louisa.

“Every noble does,” said Esmeralda. “Though most of them have years to learn. You only had a few months before you were first introduced as the wife of a lord.”

“Sometimes I think that I am being foolish for being so uncertain,” said Louisa.

“I think that you are brave,” said Esmeralda. “You are also the only noble lady that I know of who has accepted the idea of learning to defend herself.”

“I am sure that many other ladies also learn the art of self-defence,” said Louisa.

“They have,” said Esmeralda. “But those are mostly women in positions of power. They have a reason to learn to fight. But your only reason is to defend yourself.”

“Is that selfish?” asked Louisa. Esmeralda shook her head.

“No,” said Esmeralda. “You actually have more sense than most nobles.”

“Thank you,” said Louisa, smiling at her. When Scott returned with the knives, he was pleased to find his wife smiling.

“Your knives,” said Scott, presenting them to the two women. Louisa’s hand hovered over them uncertainly, but Esmeralda took one.

“Hold it like this, my lady,” said Esmeralda, holding the knife flat in her hand. “Weight it first, to see if it is not too light nor too heavy.”

“Okay,” said Louisa, nodding. She tried a few of the knives, eventually finding one that was neither too light nor too heavy. She grasped the handle in her hand, hoping that she was doing it right.

“Here, like this,” said Esmeralda, taking Louisa’s hand and repositioning it on the knife. “If you hold it like you did, you were bound to hurt your wrist.”

“Oh, okay,” said Louisa, nodding. “Someone did teach me how to fight once, long ago, but I have forgotten now.”

“Good, then maybe your old lessons will come back to you,” said Esmeralda with a bright smile.

“I hope so,” said Louisa, returning the smile. As Esmeralda demonstrated how to wield the knife, Louisa found herself relaxing. No longer would she be the shy woman too afraid to leave her house. Now, she would be strong. She would defend herself, and her family. She would stop jumping at shadows. She would be safe. And she had her husband and Esmeralda to thank for it.


End file.
